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    Ten homes with decorative parquet wooden flooring

    Our latest lookbook highlights 10 homes with decorative parquet flooring including a Victorian terraced home and 1930s apartment feature in Portugal.

    Parquet flooring is a traditional style of hardwood flooring, that is used to create decorative and mosaic-like patterns in homes and interior settings.
    The decorative hardwood flooring is made from short wooden battens that are slotted and placed together in often intricate, geometric and mosaic arrangements.
    Parquet flooring rose in popularity during the 1600s as it became a favoured option with European aristocracy, offering an alternative to decorative marble floors that required less maintenance.
    It can be installed in a number of different patterns including, herringbone, Versailles, chevron and chantilly.

    This is the latest in our series of lookbooks providing curated visual inspiration from Dezeen’s image archive. For more inspiration see previous lookbooks showcasing cavernous interiors, bright-white kitchens and self-designed homes by architects and designers.

    1930s apartment, Portugal, by Aboim Inglez Arquitectos
    Portuguese studio Aboim Inglez Arquitectos incorporated parquet flooring, stone surfaces and a bright sunroom in its update to a 1930s apartment in Lisbon (above and top).
    Hardwood, parquet flooring uncovered during the renovation was restored across the home. The floor is comprised of blocks of different tones which are arranged to create a checkerboard-style pattern that is framed by strips of light wood.
    Find out more about the 1930s apartment ›

    Apartment Basta, Russia, by Blockstudio
    A mixture of different textures, materials and time periods were all combined within this Moscow apartment by Blockstudio, which aimed to recreate the look of a Parisian apartment.
    To create a lived-in feel within the new-build structure, reclaimed-oak parquet flooring sourced from Italy was used throughout the living and dining room.
    Find out more about Apartment Basta ›

    Charred House, UK, by Rider Stirland Architects
    Rider Stirland Architects remodelled this Victorian terraced home in south London and added an extension clad in blackened wood to the rear.
    To juxtapose with the extension’s charred exterior, materials were chosen to provide the interior with warmth. Parquet flooring stretches across the home and was paired with bespoke joinery.
    Find out more about Charred House ›

    Leith apartment, UK, by Luke McClelland
    Scottish architect Luke McCellard renovated the interior of this Georgian apartment in Edinburgh, creating a bright, light and contemporary home for a formerly dark space.
    McClelland blanketed the floors of the 19th-century apartment in warm oak parquet flooring which was arranged in a herringbone pattern. The wood complements the stark white walls throughout the property.
    Find out more about Leith apartment ›

    Victorian terraced house, UK, by Matthew Giles Architects
    This Victorian terraced home in Wandsworth, London, was updated and extended by Matthew Giles Architects.
    On the ground floor, parquet flooring in a herringbone pattern was designed to draw the eye from the entrance through to the garden at the rear beyond the newly added dropped-level kitchen diner.
    Find out more about the Victorian terraced house ›

    Hatfield House, UK, by Archmongers
    Located on the iconic Golden Lane Estate in London, local studio Archmongers renovated the duplex flat using bold colours that aimed to complement the home’s modernist look.
    The studio uncovered parquet flooring which was restored and made a focal feature of the home.
    Find out more about Hatfield House ›

    Portland Residence, Canada, by Atelier Barda
    Black furniture and fixtures sit on top of the chevron-patterned oak parquet flooring in this Montreal home by Canadian architecture studio Atelier Barda.
    The studio added a rear extension to the existing stone house and reconfigured the floor plan to create open-plan living areas and a better flow between spaces. The home’s original rounded walls and mouldings were preserved and highlighted by the oak flooring beneath.
    Find out more about Portland Residence ›

    Dutch townhouse, The Netherlands, by Antonia Reif
    This early 20th-century townhouse in The Hague was renovated by Dutch architect Antonia Reif. The home was previously divided into two apartments which the architect reversed to reconnect the building’s four floors.
    Reif fitted the interior with herringbone-patterned oak flooring to create continuity between the home’s different spaces.
    Find out more about Dutch townhouse ›

    Apartment Vilnius, Lithuania, by Kristina Lastauskaitė-Pundė
    Original features at this apartment in Vilnius were spotlighted and paired with grey-painted joinery and brass accents.
    The overhaul was completed by interior designer Kristina Lastauskaitė-Pundė who wanted to give the home a contemporary update that still spotlighted its historic and original features. Muted chevron flooring spans the interior of the apartment to visually connect its different rooms.
    Find out more about Apartment Vilnius ›

    1970s apartment, Portugal, by Aurora Arquitectos
    Wooden panelling lines the walls and ceiling of areas of this apartment in Lisbon which was refurbished by Aurora Arquitectos.
    The home was defined by its use of wood seen through its vast pale herringbone-patterned parquet flooring and blonde panelling that frames skylights across the ceiling. Wood and marble were arranged in a herringbone pattern to define the apartment’s different zones and spaces.
    Find out more about the 1970s apartment ›
    This is the latest in our series of lookbooks providing curated visual inspiration from Dezeen’s image archive. For more inspiration see previous lookbooks showcasing cavernous interiors, bright-white kitchens, and self-designed homes by architects and designers.

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    Ten cavernous interiors that swap corners for curves

    A nursery by Junya Ishigami and MAD’s Cloudscape of Haikou feature in our latest lookbook, which highlights 10 softly contoured interiors from the Dezeen archive that were modelled on the sinuous shapes of clouds and wind-smoothed caves.

    Whether crafted from plaster, concrete or wooden panels, undulating walls can help to bring a sense of intimacy to otherwise large, impersonal spaces.
    Beyond just looking pretty, they can also be a practical solution to integrate everything from seating to storage into the fabric of the interior, while concealing unsightly mechanical and electrical systems.
    This is the latest in our series of lookbooks providing curated visual inspiration from Dezeen’s image archive. For more inspiration see previous lookbooks showcasing bright-white kitchens, cosy conversation pits and self-designed homes by architects and designers.
    Photo is by Joe FletcherSoftie, USA, by OPA

    Design studio OPA subverted the rational modernist grid of this house near San Francisco by overlaying a series of cloud-like architectural features on top of its existing structural shell.
    Its load-bearing columns are now enveloped by bulging white walls, while ceilings droop down to form a series of intimate seating nooks as well as a cove that surrounds the freestanding circular tub in the bathroom.
    Find out more about Softie ›
    Photo is by Paola PansiniFerrari flagship, Italy, Sybarite
    Going down a sleeker, more space-age-style route, London studio Sybarite carved out a sinuous display area at the centre of Ferrari’s lifestyle concept store in Maranello to house the carmaker’s debut fashion collection.
    The otherwise open-plan interior is cast in shades of glossy red and white and also incorporates touches of mahogany, which was used to make Ferrari’s original Enrico Nardi steering wheels of the 1950s and 1960s.
    Find out more about the Ferrari flagship ›
    Photo is by Lars Petter PettersenCabin at Norderhov, Norway, by Atelier Oslo
    Curved birchwood panels engulf the walls and ceilings of this cabin, turning it into a cosy refuge on the banks of Norway’s Lake Steinsfjorden while sweeping windows provide panoramic views over the natural landscape.
    Like a winding tunnel, the interior was designed as one continuous space, with the bedroom cordoned off from the open floor plan by a heavy grey curtain.
    Find out more about the Cabin at Norderhov ›
    Photo is by Yiorgos KordakisTwo Holiday Houses in Firostefani, Greece, by Kapsimalis Architects
    Three rocky vaulted caves, which once provided additional storage space for a traditional dwelling on Santorini, were smoothed out and finished with earthy-hued plaster to create this summer house by local practice Kapsimalis Architects.
    Colours, finishes and fittings throughout the interior were designed to reflect the building’s humble origins, incorporating arched niches and doorways, flush built-in storage and furniture made by local craftsmen.
    Find out more about Two Holiday Houses in Firostefani ›
    Photo is by CreatAR ImagesCloudscape of Haikou, China, by MAD
    Designed to evoke “a wormhole that transcends time and space”, the interior and exterior of MAD’s library on Hainan Island were cast as one continuous vessel without any right angles.
    On the inside, the sinuous white concrete shell forms small reading nooks and bookcases recessed into the walls, while concealing all of the building’s electrics and plumbing.
    Find out more about Cloud of Haikou ›
    Photo is by Tom FergusonNational Museum of Qatar gift shop, Qatar, by Koichi Takada Architects
    Around 40,000 slabs of wood were stacked on top of each other and assembled by hand to form the soaring walls and built-in shelves of the gift shop in the National Museum of Qatar.
    The interior, much like the Jean Nouvel-designed building, pays homage to Qatar’s desert landscape – particularly the crystal-crusted cavern of Dahl Al Misfir, which tunnels deep into the earth outside Doha.
    Find out more about the gift shop ›
    Photo is by Simone BossiMyrto, Sardinia, by Studio Wok
    Studio Wok looked to the way that the wind carves granite rocks on the Sardinian coast into sinuous, almost architectural structures when designing this pizzeria, set in the island’s port town of Porto Cervo.
    This erosive process is referenced in the restaurant’s curved, sandy pink plaster walls and arched windows, which are complemented by custom furnishings including a tiled counter in varying shades of green that echo the colours of local shrubs.
    Find out more about Myrto ›
    Photo is by Edmund SumnerCloud Garden, Japan, by Junya Ishigami
    Rather than covering up the bulky columns found in this high-rise office block in Atsugi, Junya Ishigami converted its former cafeteria into a nursery by inserting wiggly concrete partitions, creating archways and pathways as well as various spaces for play.
    “There are crevices that only children can pass through, and absent spaces that are considered large even for adults,” Ishigami said. “It is a space that softly ties in various objects and scales.”
    Find out more about Cloud Garden ›
    Photo is by 1988 Photography StudioTT Pilates, China, by Wanmu Shazi
    Designer Wanmu Shazi used micro-cement to cover up not just the walls but also most of the windows in the TT Pilates studio, which is located in a typical high-rise office building in Xiamen.
    Only a few organically-shaped openings allow visitors to catch glimpses of the sky while letting light dapple into the interior, in a bid to shut out the usual hustle and bustle of the Chinese port city.
    Find out more about TT Pilates ›

    Grotto, Canada, by Partisans
    Cedarwood panelling creates an undulating terrain inside this sauna in Canada, curving up from the floor to form stepped seating and skewed porthole windows as well as enveloping the wood-burning stove.
    Set on a craggy outcrop on the shore of Lake Huron, it was designed to resemble a seaside grotto carved out by the water, while its exterior was moulded perfectly to the rock formation using a 3D scanner.
    Find out more about Grotto ›
    This is the latest in our series of lookbooks providing curated visual inspiration from Dezeen’s image archive. For more inspiration see previous lookbooks showcasing bright-white kitchens, cosy conversation pits and self-designed homes by architects and designers.

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    Dezeen's top 10 shop interiors of 2021

    As part of our ongoing review of 2021, Dezeen rounds up the top 10 most remarkable and intriguing shop interiors of the year – from a cannabis dispensary made to look like an old-fashioned grocery store to a makeup boutique arranged around a large, mossy mound. More

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    Dezeen's top 10 home interiors of 2021

    For the fifth instalment in our review of 2021, Dezeen rounds up the top 10 home interiors featured this year, including a house with undulating walls and a townhouse that underwent a 1970s-style makeover. More